by Ivy Clyde
A chuckle escaped me as Danny stood like a frozen statue, looking utterly bewildered at Jacque’s greeting.
“When you told me you’re coming for a fitting, I didn’t expect a guest. What a surprise!” Jacque clapped his hands together, glowing with excitement. “He’s so young though,” he said, peering at Danny closely. “Younger than any guy I’ve seen you with. He’s pretty too.”
Crimson bloomed on Danny’s cheeks as he stepped behind me. It was astonishing how he could still be so shy after what he did last night.
To my surprise, warmth spread through my chest at the gesture. I liked how Danny sought me to protect him against the cheerful, effeminate man slobbering all over him.
“He’s lean but I bet he’s hiding solid muscle underneath those horrendous clothes,” said Jacque as he eyed Danny from head to foot. Holding out his hand toward Danny, he asked, “Come here and tell me your name.”
Before Danny could do either, Jacque wrapped an arm around his waist and steered him further inside the shop.
“I’m Danny,” he said, glancing at me as Jacque swept him toward the changing rooms.
“It’s not often I get to say this to a handsome man but please, Danny, get on the stool and take off your clothes,” said Jacque as he gestured toward a platform and a footstool set before a long stretch of mirrors.
All the color drained from Danny’s face at those words. “Can’t you take my measurements with my clothes on?”
“They won’t be as good with your clothes on,” explained Jacque. “I need proper measurements to make you the best fitted suits money can buy.” He massaged Danny’s shoulders to relax him but it had the opposite effect.
Danny pushed Jacque away. “Don’t touch me.” A cold, dangerous look descended into his usually soft brown eyes.
“But—”
“Don’t get closer.”
Jacque turned to me with a helpless look in his face.
“Take his measurements with his clothes on,” said a different voice. “You don’t mind taking off your jacket though, right?”
I turned to stare at my cousin. For a moment, I’d allowed myself to think he wasn’t here at all.
A look of pure relief crossed Danny’s face as he looked toward Alexei with a grateful look.
Something close to rage flared inside me at once. I hated Danny looking at Alexei with that expression.
“I won’t be able to assure you a good fit,” said Jacque, looking worried. “What should I do, Mr. Sokolov?”
“Do what he wants,” I said shortly. Unbuttoning my jacket, I sat down on a settee and folded my arms before my chest.
Jacque was flustered but it was nothing compared to how Danny looked. I’d never seen him so uncomfortable around another man before.
“Arms up, dear,” said Jacque in a gentle voice.
Danny’s movements were stiff as he followed Jacque’s instructions. He kept his gaze on Alexei instead of me as if staring at my cousin was easing his discomfort.
“What happened to the deal with the Kim family?” I asked, turning my attention on Alexei.
Alexei gazed at me with cool amber eyes from behind his glasses. “They are going over the agreement.”
“I want you to go and see them,” I said. “Go there right away and get them to sign the agreement. How long do they need to decide? It’s already been a week. What will I tell Dad if he asks about it?”
“You’re right. I’ll go now,” said Alexei. My cousin was the most annoying bastard on the planet but he was also a workaholic and a kiss-ass when it came to impressing my father.
I settled more comfortably on the settee as he walked out of the fitting area.
“Do you know what the Kims specialize in?” I asked, forcing Danny’s attention on me.
“They are black market traders,” he said. “They have several storefronts across the city but sell anything from over-the-counter medication to kidneys.”
A smile lifted the corner of my lips. I hadn’t been wrong to make him work for me. He could remember details so well.
“Did you find anything interesting about them?” I asked.
“All the accounts seemed to belong to Kims,” said Danny with a thoughtful look. “It appeared as if they don’t like working with others.”
“Danny sounds a lot smarter than the other one,” said Jacque as he measured his chest.
Jacque had no idea how smart Danny was. It took him only a day of perusing through the sludge of information to figure that about the Kims.
Danny stayed still and silent.
When Jacque finished noting down the measurements, he came around to me with a familiar book. It was the catalog with fabric swatches.
“Make them all black,” I said.
“All? He would look good in white and navy too, Mr. Sokolov.”
“Only black,” I repeated. “It will hide every kind of stain.”
Danny chewed his bottom lip as he stared at me from top of the footstool.
“Seven day suits and two evening ones,” I instructed. “You can choose the material and cut best suited for him. I’m sure you can take care of that stuff.”
“Of course, Mr. Sokolov,” said Jacque. “You won’t be disappointed.”
“Come on, Danny,” I called out to him. “Let’s go.”
Getting off the stool, he moved toward me. I handed him his jacket and gestured toward the front hall.
I couldn’t figure out why he seemed so uncomfortable in Jacque’s store. Jacque was uber effeminate but he didn’t even try to flirt with him. Something told me it wasn’t about Jacque but rather the clothes shopping.
This time, I made Danny sit with me in the backseat.
Without Alexei, I could have him all to myself. It irked me to feel relieved at my cousin’s absence. It wasn’t like Alexei was into men. He was firmly straight since he was young. There was nothing about Danny that would turn a straight man suddenly gay. River had that ability but not Danny. Then why...
I glanced down at the young man beside me. There was definitely something unique about him even though I couldn’t point it out just yet. Maybe I had to break him even more to get a look inside his soul.
But first, it was time I rid him of his shyness.
I’d already introduced him to death and blood. It was time Danny was introduced to sex and pleasure.
Heat rushed through my veins, causing my cock to stir up. I didn’t remember feeling this excited about anything in a long time. I was glad Alexei stopped Jacque from getting Danny undressed. It’d be me who unwrapped him. He was, after all, mine. It was fitting I got to do the unwrapping myself.
“Are we going to meet with Alexei?” asked Danny.
“Don’t mention another man to me,” I said in a soft voice laced with venom. “Or I will punish you.”
“How else will I—”
Leaning into him, I captured his lips, cutting off whatever silly question he had for me. He froze at my touch but didn’t push me away.
My body shifted closer, pulling him against me. It took a bit of coaxing to open him up to me but I groaned at the first sweet taste of him. He was timid, clearly still nervous with me but he knew how to kiss. His pink lips were soft and full, a pleasure to kiss and suck while my tongue tasted his mouth thoroughly.
I kissed him for a long time, feeling drunk on the sweet taste of him. There was something unique about him. No man had ever stirred such conflicting emotions inside me as Danny. I wanted to simultaneously ravish him and protect him.
I couldn’t stop running my hands all over his body. An overwhelming urge to tear the layers of clothes between my palm and his skin rose up inside me but I stopped myself from doing it because we were still in my car with the chauffeur only a few feet away.
My hands grazed his sides until it reached the swell of his ass. I squeezed it, causing him to moan out. The soft, breathy noise coming from his sweet lips made my cock tighten in my pants.
Danny’s hands clutched onto my s
houlders. Even though I was kissing him so demandingly, he was hesitating to touch me back.
Another barrier to break, I noted in my mind.
My hands moved to unbutton the top buttons of his shirt so I could taste that delicious soft skin of his neck. Danny’s body shivered against mine as my lips traced a line along the column of his throat.
The sounds escaping his lips heightened the heat burning through my veins.
I needed more of him. My fingers clutched onto his buttons as I kissed the spot at the base of his throat.
“Stop, Victor,” he moaned.
I didn’t, biting the skin hard to punish him for even saying such a thing to me.
Danny’s body twisted against mine as I felt him starting to push me off. “Please, Victor. Please, don’t.” His fingers brushed the back of my hands.
The pleasurable moans escaping him changed into hysterical, erratic wheezes.
Raising my head, I looked at him. A look of pure terror was etched onto his frozen face.
Shit! I thought, clenching my fists. Did I push him too far already? Did it remind him of that bastard who tried to rape him?
I moved my hands to cup his cheeks. “Look at me, Danny,” I said. “Take a deep breath in...and out. Again. In...and out. You’re safe with me. Okay?”
It was a few minutes before Danny relaxed. His breathing was shallow but it didn’t sound as labored as before.
I moved away, giving him space to pull himself together again. Danny was the tastiest treat thrown my way but I had to be careful before I could fully savor him. I needed River’s help to relax and loosen him before showing him how much pleasure I could give him.
19
Danica
I took several deep breaths to calm my pounding heart. My core thrummed with hard pulses, shaking my whole body with tremors. At one point, I’d lost my mind completely to the intense pleasure coursing through me. I had no idea Victor unbuttoned my shirt until I felt his warm mouth at my upper chest.
Half an inch more and he’d have seen my bindings.
My heart hammered in my chest, refusing to slow down. It’d been way too close.
I risked a glance at Victor and found him staring right back at me. At least, his silver eyes weren’t blazing with rage. The expression on his face was very similar to the one Alexei wore, like he was trying to solve a mystery about me.
I looked back at my knees, unsure of what to say. One moment, I was kissing him back like a thirsty sailor and the next, I was pushing him off me.
My fingers brushed over my lips and found them swollen. I swiped my tongue over my bottom lip and tasted him there.
I squirmed in my seat, my body protesting the distance between me and Victor.
What the hell is wrong with me? I questioned myself as my core throbbed with need. There’s no way I could be so turned on by a few minutes of kissing with Victor Sokolov.
But I was. I had to admit wanting to jump the man like a complete wanton and taking advantage of him. He could shoot me afterward if he wanted.
Great thinking, Danica, I berated myself. Chief would be so proud of you right now.
The thought of Nolan was like a splash of cold water on me. There was no way I could compromise the operation because of my weakness. A sudden buzz from beside me distracted me from my thoughts.
Looking down on the seat, I saw it was Victor’s phone. Someone called ‘Sugar’ was calling him. Picking up the phone, Victor answered it.
“Babe?”
“You better get back here and untie me right now!” A male voice shouted so loudly, I could hear it too. Surprise flitted through me. Who was brave enough to shout at Victor like that?
Victor glanced at me and to my astonishment, he was grinning mischievously. He pressed a finger on the screen and laid the phone on the palm of his hand, allowing me to listen in on this conversation.
“How can you be calling me if you’re still tied up?” said Victor. His voice was heavy with affection and his usually cold eyes were brimming with warmth. He looked...happy.
“The maid,” came the annoyed voice. “She offered to make the call seeing she can’t change the sheets with me on it!”
Victor chuckled before speaking. “You’re always happy to change the sheets yourself, River.”
“I’m telling her to untie me.”
“Are you going to be bad, River?” he asked in a soft voice. “I’ll have to punish you if you do that.”
“I love being punished,” said the stranger in a pouting tone. There was a sound like the person just huffed a breath. “Listen, darling, I can’t pick up the order if I stay tied up. Do you want to be late with your present because you won’t let the maid untie me? Also, Ginger wants to go for a walk—”
The playfulness in Victor’s face shifted as he glanced at me. “No,” he said in a grim tone. “Tell her to untie you. Collect my order and get ready for work. We’ll be back in a few hours.”
“We?”
“Danny and me.”
“Ohh! I always do better with an audience. Please come back soon!”
The call switched off and Victor put the phone back into his jacket’s pocket. I was itching to ask who that was but held my tongue. It was better he told me on his own without me prying into the matter.
There was no way I could’ve missed the flirtatious tone in both their voices. The person was even marked as ‘Sugar’ on his phone. I suddenly remembered the things Boris cursed about Victor.
Faggot, closeted homo, fag prince...
Was Victor really gay? There was no way a gay guy could kiss me like that and still be gay.
He thinks you’re a guy and he kissed you, a voice spoke up in my head.
Damn it! I almost bit my tongue to rein in the curse.
I was more messed up than I thought. My body was aching for a gay man’s touch.
Maybe he’s bi? A more hopeful voice spoke up in my mind.
And suddenly, I found myself praying for Victor Sokolov to be bisexual. He was the man who forced me to torture a man to death and here I was, wishing he could find me attractive.
“Are you hungry?”
“What?” I stared up at him, wondering if I heard him right.
“I didn’t get to eat breakfast this morning,” explained Victor. “Did you eat?”
As if my stomach suddenly remembered about food, it grumbled loudly.
“I’ll take that as a ‘no’,” said Victor, grinning at me.
I felt my own lips morphing into a smile. What the fuck was wrong with me?
Pressing on a switch by his side, Victor spoke loudly. “Kevin, drop us at The Purple Hilton.”
“Yes, Boss,” the chauffeur called from the front seat.
Ten minutes later, the car came to a stop in front of a glittering hotel building set in a posh Manhattan neighborhood. Victor got out before me, so I hurried to climb out of the car.
The winter sunshine was warm on my face as I stood staring at the valets approaching us in neat, white uniforms.
“Come on,” said Victor as he grabbed my hand.
I walked beside him, feeling self-conscious to death. This was no stupid business meeting with a bunch of mobsters. I was about to enter a classy restaurant in nothing but a cheap suit. There was no way to deny I looked like a pauper beside the beautiful, daunting mafia prince at my side.
“Look what the dog dragged in,” said a snide voice just as we were crossing the hotel lobby.
Looking up, I came face-to-face with a tall man in a luxurious navy suit. The young man could’ve been handsome if he wasn’t wearing an ugly smirk on his heavily freckled face.
“Hello to you, too, Morrison,” said Victor in a cool tone. His face had turned into an expressionless mask just like Alexei’s.
“You’re still fagging around, huh?” Stepping closer, the young man leaned into my face. “This is a pretty one. I’d fuck him if he came with a wig and some makeup.”
“Who’d want to fuck a loser like you?”
I asked in a frigid tone. “You can’t even hold on to your family’s properties. Last I heard, you were whoring around with the pimp lords of Brooklyn to get back the shit you lost during gambling.”
Loud, raucous laughter erupted at my side while Morrison’s face soured before my eyes.
I’d recognized the bastard as soon as Victor mentioned his name. He was one of the rich fuckers caught in Pete’s net. The young man was running around the city, trying to get back his family’s properties he gave away to satiate his addiction to gambling.
A warm arm settled around my waist as Victor pulled me against him.
“Got anything else to say to my man?” asked Victor with a savage grin. “Fair warning, though, Morrison. He can castrate a guy. You must’ve heard what happened to Boris Pavlov? The bastard with the shades who managed the nightclubs? That’s his handiwork, although I must take credit for directing him.”
Morrison’s eyes widened as they settled on me.
Nolan and the team must have already recovered Boris’s body, I thought in the back of my mind. Boris’s death must have already been reported by the media.
Victor chuckled and walked past the stricken young man, taking me along with him.
“You made me so happy back there, I think I need to get you another gift,” he whispered in my ear.
I tried not to shiver as his hot breath hit the sensitive skin of my neck.
“It was nothing,” I said. “Pete managed to get a lot of prime properties from him. Morrison’s a loser who can’t stop gambling away his family’s fortune.”
“I was so right about you,” he said, playing with the strands of my hair. “You never disappoint me. Even Dad would be happy to know we have Morrison Junior in our hands.”
Relief spread through me. He was clearly not mad at me about the incident in the car. Also, the thought of impressing Ivan Sokolov sent a thrill through me.
Victor led me inside an elevator and hit ‘50’ on the panel.
He stood close enough for me to feel the heat seeping through his clothes. My skin burst into goosebumps and my heart hammered in my chest from his closeness. It was a relief the elevator stopped a few times on our way up and people entered it, saving me from succumbing to the lust burning in my body.